Allahabad, Nov 7(ANI): To accelerate the tourism industry in Uttar Pradesh and to promote adventure sports among the masses, a three-day water sports rally is being organized at Allahabad.

The event named Ganga Water Rally commenced on Saturday and the response according to the organizers has been encouraging.

Among the various events are the thrills of rowing down the River Ganga from Allahabad to the holy city of Varanasi via Mirzapur.

Seven teams of adventure sports enthusiasts began their journey on the opening day.

Earlier, the other participants displayed their skills in rowing varieties of crafts such as kayaks, canoes and rowing boats.

According to Amit Srivastava, Regional Tourist Officer of Allahabad, the main objective of the rally has been to explore scenic beauty along the River Ganga and to develop adventure tourism, which holds the potential to attract foreign tourists.

"The prime motive of the water rally is to promote water sports, to bolster tourism in the towns located along the River Ganga and to spread the message, 'Keep Ganga Clean' among the people. We must keep our River Ganga, free of pollution as it is our lifeline," Srivastava said.

Rajeev Aggarwal, District Magistrate of Allahabad, said that the expansive region through which River Ganga flows has a huge potential for growth of tourism, supplemented by adventure sports.

"The aim behind this rally is to encourage adventure sports especially water sports in Uttar Pradesh and to develop a feeling of healthy competition and sportsmanship among the participants. Also, we wish to popularise this stretch along with the Yamuna bank, which is considered to be the best for water sports. By doing so we wish to make the locals residing in and around this area feel that this is a focal point of attraction for the tourists," Aggarwal said.

On the very opening day, the participants as well as the locales were seen enjoying the event to the hilt.

"We are feeling really very good. This is a great step taken to enhance water sports here," said Abhay Singh, a participant.

The grand finale of Ganga Water Rally will take place on November 9. By Virendra Pathak (ANI)